Bahavas
High Priest Bahavas was one of the leaders of the Carja splinter tribe known as the Shadow Carja, along with Helis, champion of the erstwhile Carja Sun-King Jiran. Along with Helis, he was also the founder of a secret cult dedicated to retaking control of Carja territory, the Eclipse. However unknown to the two men, the Eclipse was actually an instrument of a rogue AI called HADES to achieve its goal of exterminating all life on Earth. Thus both he and Helis almost were the inadvertent facilitators of the eradication of all life, including their own. Bahavas was eventually killed by Uthid, a former Carja captain whom he tried to have killed on trumped up charges of conspiracy to assassinate their figurehead Sun-King Itamen. History Overthrow of Jiran When the 13th Carja Sun-King Jiran was overthrown by his middle son Avad due to his atrocities, Bahavas and Helis fled the Carja capital of Meridian to the Carja stronghold at Sunfall on Jiran's order, taking Jiran's wife Nasadi and son Itamen with them, along with Jiran's elite soldiers, called Kestrels, and a number of Carja tribespeople. He and Helis formed a splinter tribe from these people, calling themselves the Shadow Carja. The two men set up Itamen as their figurehead monarch, though they held de facto power. They continually promised the Carja tribespeople who came with them the eventual retaking of Meridian and control of the Carja homeland, but in fact, they lived in luxury in the Sunfall palace, guarded by the Kestrels, while the people languished in squalor in a tent city outside the palace walls. HADES Not possessing the military strength to retake the Carja homeland, Bahavas and Helis remained at Sunfall until they were contacted by a Banuk man named Sylens, who wanted them to meet someone whom he promised would give them the power to retake Meridian and the homeland. He and Helis went to the arranged location with a squad of Kestrels. There, they were introduced to what they were led to believe was the Buried Shadow, a deity in the Carja religion. The "Shadow" was in fact HADES, a rogue artificial intelligence from 21st century who was seeking a means of exterminating all life on EarthGAIA's Dying Plea. At Sylens' suggestion, it posed as the Buried Shadow to manipulate the two men via their religious beliefs into forming a cult that served it. It promised Meridian as a reward, but its actual goal was to use the cult as an army to conquer the Carja homeland so that it could get access to the Spire, a towering structure near Meridian, which was instrumental in its plan to destroy all life. As HADES and Sylens intended, the two men were indeed duped and formed the cult, known as the Eclipse. Uthid While Helis managed the Eclipse, Bahavas concerned himself with governing the Shadow Carja. As remorseless as Helis or his former liege Jiran, Bahavas decided that the elderly and infirm among the Shadow Carja tribespeople had to be culled because they weakened the tribe. To this end, he secretly hired a murderer to quietly kill such tribespeople in their sleep at night, using poison. However, the murders came to the attention of Uthid, a respected former Carja captain who had joined with the tribespeople who had fled to Sunfall along with his men. Uthid investigated the murders and apprehended the killer. He and his men brought him before Bahamas, who publicly thanked them for their service before privately having the killer released. Knowing that this would identify him as having given the order for the cullings, Bahamas concocted lies about Uthid conspiring to assassinate their figurehead king Itamen, and ordered his Kestrels to kill him and his men. All of the men fell, but Uthid escaped to a remote, mountainous area known as the Greenfall. In response, Bahavas called an assembly of bounty hunters at the Sunfall palace and promised them a hefty reward for hunting Uthid down and killing him. Death But Vanasha, a Carja agent at Sunfall, knew Uthid was innocent. Spotting the Nora brave Aloy, who was at Sunfall on a quest, she convinced her of Uthid's innocence and asked her to go to the Greenclimb and assist him against the bounty hunters. Aloy agreee and did so. Together, she and Uthid stood against and killed all of the bounty hunters who appeared. However, Bahavas then appeared with a unit of Kestrels to ensure Uthid's death in case the bounty hunters failed. He wa as they attacked Aloy and Uthod, but they too fell before the duo. Bereft of protection, Bahamas tried to justify his order of the culling to Uthid. Uthid contemptuously drew a knife and stabbed Bahavas to death. Associated Quests *Traitor's Bounty References Category:Shadow Carja Tribe Members Category:Deceased Characters Category:Sun Priests Category:Enemies